Invalid memory access via stale packet pointers
Published Oct 18, 2026 · Updated Oct 18, 2026
Packet-pointer misuse in the Linux BPF verifier before 7.2.9 allows local users to access invalidated kernel memory. In kernel/bpf/verifier.c, btf_check_func_arg_match represents packet arguments as PTR_TO_MEM, retaining validity across subprogram calls even when packet mutation invalidates the underlying memory. Exploitation requires permission to load a packet-processing BPF program; the published material does not establish privilege escalation or a specific crash outcome.
Summary
What happened
Packet-pointer misuse in the Linux BPF verifier before 7.2.9 allows local users to access invalidated kernel memory. In kernel/bpf/verifier.c, btf_check_func_arg_match represents packet arguments as PTR_TO_MEM, retaining validity across subprogram calls even when packet mutation invalidates the underlying memory. Exploitation requires permission to load a packet-processing BPF program; the published material does not establish privilege escalation or a specific crash outcome.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-98589
- Published
- Oct 18, 2026
- Updated
- Oct 18, 2026
- Vendor
- The Linux Kernel Organization
- Product
- Linux
- Classifications
- Unavailable
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- Unavailable
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Oct 18, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Oct 18, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=0 <7.2.9
- Affected versionversion=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <0b6b2bb9b90ad1e2d94d18f626258a1dbbdee0ea
- Affected versionversion=1da177e4c3f41524e886b7f1b8a0c1fc7321cac2 <a6c1edfbe240e4377038a0e1d233ad81fde9a21b
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
No CVSS assessment is available in this record.
CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.
Activity data is delayed. The latest report is Sep 28, 2026.
Weakness, pattern, technique
No sourced classifications are available.
Public exploit references
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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